downturn

Silicon Valley is experiencing an extended boom that has only recently shown signs of fatigue. Many observers portend an ominous environment ripe for a bust similar to the early 2000s. Yes, there are many similarities between now and the dot-com boom. There are, however, key differences that will enable Silicon Valley to continue driving forward, no matter the headwinds. Read More

I’ve been hearing a lot lately about “The New Normal” for VC-backed technology companies. It’s not just in the popular press headlines. Nearly every conversation I have with co-investors, founders and LPs these days involves some discussion of current “new normal” market conditions and what they mean. There’s clearly change in the air. Read More

The last decade has seen a period of extremely high venture capital activity, with a record peak of investment reached in 2015. This period of high VC investments has led to many amazing new products and companies, but it also has sparked a “Hollywood” era of high spending for early-stage companies. This glitzy big-budget period in Silicon Valley and further afield led influential… Read More

We are accustomed to hearing that European tech is perpetually in Silicon Valley’s shadow. Now there have been suggestions that the local tech scene is starting to feel Silicon Valley’s valuation woes. If true, this should raise alarm bells, because if European technology startups struggle to raise money from wary investors, it could hit the brakes on Europe’s budding… Read More

I started my last company in mid-2009, just as the market was beginning to recover from the fallout of the financial crisis. In the past several years, surrounded by fast-growth startups with sky-high valuations, many of us forgot what the downturn felt like. Today, things are changing. Again, we’re facing economic uncertainty on a global scale. Read More

The rise was like a tech startup fairytale. Within three years of founding, this unicorn company had raised more than $1 billion in venture capital — closing an astonishing $950 million in its final private round at a nearly $5 billion valuation. Revenue growth was skyrocketing from $30 million in year two to $713 million in year three and a run-rate of $2.6 billion in year four. Read More

I recently took the opportunity to visit with influential friends and colleagues in the New York City technology space. I sat with longtime friend Nick Chirls, founder of Notation Capital﻿, and discussed early- and later-stage seed funding. Similarly, at a dinner with friend and colleague Rameet Chawla﻿, we took stock in the state of affairs from the perspective of technology services. Read More

The Internet is awash with gloom-and-doom predictions about the death of many unicorns, a down market for investing in startups, falling public company multiples and a massive disconnect between private and public valuations. Read More

All it takes is a quick look at the market to see that we are in for a bumpy ride — and a longer-term downturn may be imminent. Tech is not immune to that, which means we’ll see a hit to valuations, VC funding and fundraising. Lots of experts have talked about what that might mean for activity in the tech sector broadly. But what does it mean for the intersection of regulation… Read More

Latest Crunch Report

The Bay Area is well-acquainted with boom and bust cycles, and while it’s too soon to declare that the tech economy has turned, recruiters see early indicators that it’s happening.
Indeed, a handful of job placement executives confirms what recent headlines about layoffs already imply: The market is softening for numerous sectors of the startup world, as well as at publicly… Read More

Samsung lost $16.2 million in profit last year compared to a fraction of that a two years ago. It is the first loss in Samsung history. Interestingly, total revenue was up but profit fell due to smaller margins on phones and televisions. Read More

With news of doom and gloom coming at us from every side I would like to take a moment to look at the market as it stands and assess what a slow-down/recession will mean for us, the tech obsessed.
To recap, we are in this mess because of what amounts to a credit freeze. Companies that once could request “cash” to cover overnight expenses – we’re talking millions… Read More